


Naive Melodies

by pearldiver



Category: Persona 4, Persona Series
Genre: First Kiss, Im bad at this, M/M, Mutual Pining, the inherent homoeroticism of making mixtapes for your homie, totally not projecting my music taste onto junes boy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:27:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24179677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pearldiver/pseuds/pearldiver
Summary: “This one's a bit... different,” Yosuke says while handing Yu the mix CD he's been working on. The third one to date.Yu raises his eyebrows, asking his friend to elaborate without needing to use any words.“It's, um- There's no theme this time, just some songs I've been listening to lately. It's kinda all over the place.”“Fine by me.” Yu truly does not mind if it's a mess. If Yosuke made him a playlist with four hours of terrible Christian song parodies, he'd still listen to it. All that matters is that Yosuke made something for him.
Relationships: Hanamura Yosuke/Narukami Yu, Hanamura Yosuke/Persona 4 Protagonist, Hanamura Yosuke/Seta Souji
Comments: 17
Kudos: 156





	1. Yu

“This one's a bit... different,” Yosuke says while handing Yu the mixt CD he's been working on. The third one to date.

Yu raises his eyebrows, asking his friend to elaborate without needing to use any words.

“It's, um- There's no theme this time, just some songs I've been listening to lately. It's kinda all over the place.” 

“Fine by me.” Yu truly does not mind if it's a mess. If Yosuke made him a playlist with four hours of terrible Christian song parodies, he'd still listen to it. All that matters is that Yosuke made something for him. 

Yu has a shift at the daycare today. Taking care of the adorable children usually fills his heart with joy, but this time he barely feels anything, aside from the agitation at the thought of getting back home as soon as possible. Besides, his heart is already filled with another emotion for today.

He can't deny himself the feelings he has for his best friend, not anymore. Not when the day he comes back to the city is mere weeks away. He spends his bus ride back home imagining what it would be like to finally confess to him, even though he knows that's a terrible idea. 

As soon as Yu's back in his room, he reaches for the CD that has been waiting for him at the bottom of his bag. He finally has the time to inspect it more thoroughly. The cover is clearly hand-drawn by Yosuke, in black and red pen; under the boldly-written title, he drew himself, his right hand making a peace sign and left embracing Yu, who is smiling, his eyes on his partner. Narukami recognizes this; Yosuke must have used one of the pictures he took on the school camping trip as reference. 

He stops himself from reminiscing too much by turning the box over to see the back. There's the tracklist, written in black with some random red letters sprinkled in for flavor. He quickly shifts his focus to the doodles around the tracklist, so as not to spoil the fun of listening.

When he's done grinning about the effort Yosuke has put into the little drawings, he opens his TV shelf and inserts the disc into the dusty CD player that Yu only uses for his friend's mixtapes. Before the first track loads up, he's already at his desk, getting ready to do his homework as he listens.

The first song starts off very calm, only to explode after less than a minute. Startled and intrigued by the singer's sudden scream, Yu decides to stop trying to solve math problems for a moment and listen to the song with his undivided attention. The song is explicitly about the turmoil of falling in love, and Yu can't stop himself from thinking about Yosuke yet again. He even gets chills at the end but quickly snaps out of it.

The next song is more quintessential Hanamura Yosuke – Yu's heard him blasting it on his ever-present headphones many times. He knows this one won't surprise him, so he goes back to doing his homework. One line echoes in his mind, however.

'I know I won't be leaving here with you.'

He curses his mind for projecting his feelings for Yosuke onto everything that exists.

“Focus, dammit!” He hisses, the end of a pencil digging into his temple.

He manages to solve some difficult problems without thinking about anything else. As the third song ends and the next starts, he decides he deserves a break and immerses himself in the vaguely familiar, naive melody that now plays in the background.

As the vocals kick in, he closes his eyes, no longer able to shift his thoughts from the memories of last summer, especially those involving his partner. It all drifts back to him, the uncharacteristic, silk-soft quality Yosuke's voice took on when he poured his heart out at the flood plain that one time. The coarseness of that one punch his partner managed to deal him when they brawled. The curious sensation he discovered showed up in his chest each time Yosuke smiled at him. That's how he knew.

The next song lends itself nicely to these thoughts, but he needs to put them aside. He has never shown up to school with unfinished homework and he has no desire to break that streak. Unfortunately for him, the song after that also makes him think about love. It's as if Yosuke is subconsciously tormenting him with love songs. Why are those specifically on his partner's mind? Why did he put them on the mix, one after another?

And then it hits him. Yosuke has been acting more and more secretive lately. His desperate tangents about wanting a girlfriend have also faded over time. That must mean that he's fallen for some girl and is too embarrassed to admit it, even to his best friend.

Yu's heart drops, not exactly sad, more disappointed in himself. Why didn't he notice earlier? Did he just ignore all the other signs so he could live in his fantasy world with no obstacles in his imagined way a little longer?

He ponders this, giving up on math entirely to the point of getting up from behind his desk and throwing himself onto the couch. He wants to scream into the pillows, the realization of how horrible a friend he's been only sinking in now. 

Aggressive sounds of blunt drumming and guitar enter Yu's ears, spiraling him further into distress as he hears the word 'love' for the thousandth time today, now haunting every cell in his body. 'Love' is what is eating away at him. 'Love' is what is eating away at his and Yosuke's friendship – the thing he should cherish the most.

He stands up quickly and pulls out his phone. It's too late to call his partner. Instead, he types 'I'm sorry.' into the message bar but shuts his phone off without sending. He should handle this in person.

Resigned, he grabs the CD case and returns to the couch, now sitting with his knees up. He stares at the cover for a bit, appreciating the effort Yosuke's put into it despite never showing interest in drawing. He doesn't notice the song ending until another one replaces it. The sweeter, more delicate sound makes him delve deeper into his thoughts of his partner. He knows he can't just stop loving him, but he can't expect anything in return.

'You're by my side, but are you still with me?'

Yu blinks back tears for the first time in months, maybe years. He manages not to break down and turns his gaze to the tracklist. He studies it intently, analyzing every minute detail of every doodle. Most of them are related to Yu in some way; there are cats and paper cranes, among other things. He is smiling when another thought creeps in; this is a parting gift. A souvenir Yosuke clearly put a lot of effort and thought into. Something that will serve the purpose of reminding Yu of his partner when he's back in the big city, hundreds of miles away. 

These songs will now make Yu think of Yosuke, his first love, each time he hears them. No matter how far apart they are and regardless of if the feeling is mutual or not. Yu can't decide on whether that is a blessing or a curse.

Another song comes on. Yu recognizes the band. It's one of Yosuke's guilty pleasures, which he likes to mention way more than his pleasures of the non-guilty sort. As the lead singer pours her heart out, inevitably using the word 'love', Yu distracts himself with reading through the tracklist. He appreciates Yosuke's commitment to the black-and-red color scheme, but can't help being bothered by how the scarce red letters were picked out at random, without any rhythm to them.

'Unless...'

Yu scans every title and picks out each red letter to reveal a shocking message. Ignoring the black ones, the letters spell out 'I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU'.

The boy has never been more confused than at this moment, his whole body both shivering and overcome with immense heat. What is the meaning of this? What should he do now? What if this is some kind of joke? Should he confront Yosuke about it tomorrow or pretend he never noticed? How does this end?

The last song opens up with a series of echoey, theatrical 'oohs' and then transitions into a piano melody, seemingly soothing yet filled with tension. For a while, Yu stares into nothingness, tired of thinking, longing to do something for once, instead. His reverie ends abruptly, as he feels a tear fall down his face. Then another. Then another.

'I could give up all my life for just one kiss  
I would surely die if you dismiss me from your love'

Why is he crying? He can't tell what he's feeling anymore. There is only one thing he is absolutely sure of – he needs to see Yosuke. 

The song ends on a yet another 'I love you', only Yu doesn't mind it this time. He composes himself and prepares for bed – tomorrow is going to be a big day.


	2. Yosuke

'Left foot, right foot...'

Yosuke needs to force himself to walk to school. More than usual, that is. Dreading each step taken towards the building, he briefly considers running off somewhere no one could find him. The idea is quickly abandoned; he's too exhausted to even think of a place he could go, much less actually go there.

He didn't get much sleep last night; his regrets about yesterday wouldn't let him.

He could have handled it better. If he'd ripped the band-aid off and just confessed to Narukami instead of making up puzzles like a serial killer, he'd have received an instant answer. Instead, he subjected himself to hours upon hours of pointless tossing and turning at night and heaven only knows what else still awaits him. Yu is a busy man, after all. He might not have listened to it yet-

A tap on Yosuke's shoulder jolts him out of his trance. It's Yu, he can tell; most people refrain from touching him and get his attention with words, but his partner is a man of action, in every sense of the phrase. Yosuke accepts that, even if the slightest brush of Narukami's hand can drive him insane at times.

He takes off his headphones and turns his head towards Yu, who is now walking beside him. His anxieties about the mixtape suddenly evaporate for the first time in hours, giving way to the usual excitement of seeing his crush.

“Yo, partner!”

“Hi, um... You wouldn't happen to have homework finished for today, would you?” There is a hint of nervousness in Yu's voice.

“I would, actually- Wait, did the great Narukami Yu forget to do his homework? Impossible!” This has never happened before, not to Yosuke's knowledge, at least. Setting his astonishment aside, he starts rummaging through his bag – can't leave a friend hanging.

“I didn't forget- Something came up.” Yosuke's interest is peaked – Yu is often busy, yes, but also the most organized person he's ever known – the boy doesn't normally allow for things to 'come up'.

“What could that have been?” Yosuke questions as he hands Narukami a pile of papers.

“I'll tell you later. Thanks.” How Yosuke hates the word 'later', especially right now. It's probably nothing, but what if it isn't? Why would he wait to tell him anything? 

“No prob. It might have some mistakes in it, though.” Yosuke rarely bothers to even try doing his homework. He only has it today because it served as a way to distract himself from what he'd done.

The bell chimes as they enter through the school gate. When Yosuke plops down at his desk, all the thoughts finally come drifting back unabated. The next few hours are going to be torture.

The next few hours are torture, indeed. Not only does Yosuke's mind find new ways to agonize over every minute detail of everything that has happened these past twenty-four hours, but Narukami is right in front of him the entire time, which makes the thoughts inescapable.

Lunchtime finally comes. Before Yosuke can lay his head down on his desk and try to get some sleep as he did for the smaller breaks earlier, Yu turns to him, lunchbox in hand. The aroma hitting his nose is too nice to ignore, if ignoring Yu was ever an option.

It's unwise to hang out at the rooftop when it's so chilly outside, but there is no other place like it at Yasogami. The only person keeping the two boys from being alone is the relentless Weather Girl, who seems to have sprouted roots in the concrete. Paying her no mind, they sit at their usual spot.

The next thirty minutes feel like an eternity to Yosuke. It's not that catching Narukami up on all the gaming news he's missed or listening to him talk about a new cat his neighbors adopted is boring; on most days, Yosuke would feel blessed to have that. But he can't bring himself to enjoy it today. He needs to know if Yu's listened to his mixtape yet, but he's fucked if he hasn't and even more fucked if he has, so why bother asking?

Just when Yosuke's conflicting emotions are about to overflow, the bell saves him. As they start heading for the door, Yu abruptly turns around, now facing Yosuke.

“About the thing I was supposed to tell you...”

Yosuke's world stops for a moment. His teeth, fists, and something else are all more clenched than ever, his throat suddenly dry. This time, Narukami isn't going to squeeze out even a quiet 'Yeah?' from his usually loud partner.

“Actually, can you come over after school? Or do you have a shift at Junes?”

So he did listen to it. And now he's going to reject him. At least he's nice enough to deal Yosuke that blow in a controlled environment-

“No, I'm free today.” Yosuke barely manages to huff out before the silence gets any more awkward.

“Cool.” Yu smiles faintly, then looks Yosuke in the face and steps a bit closer. Yosuke's world stops once more.

“Um... you don't look too well. Want me to get the nurse?” A concerned look furrows Narukami's brow. It's a rare sight to behold.

“What? No, I'm totally fine!” Yosuke puts every drop of energy he has left into trying to calm down. He even attempts at a chuckle, but it doesn't sound too convincing.

“Let's go back, then. We're gonna be late.”

Yosuke thinks he's gone over every possible thing that can happen today until Yu grabs his wrist and proves him wrong. He pulls at it lightly to get Yosuke moving but doesn't let go until they're about to enter the classroom. Narukami turns to him once more, giving him a look that says, 'Are you sure you're okay?'. Yosuke responds with a smile, mimicking Yu's quietude.

Yosuke doesn't know if he wants for the classes to end right now or go on forever so that he never has to face Narukami. He's even more confused now, after what just happened. Surely, Yu grabbed him like that just to offer support, right? But what if that wasn't everything? He probably just feels sorry for him, that's why he's acting so nice today.

By the last bell, Yosuke has prayed to every deity he knows for this to go smoothly. Not 'well', not 'great', just 'smoothly'; he can't ask any god to make Yu like him back. At the end of the day, all he can wish for is for Narukami to still be in his life in some way after this.

On their way to Dojima's, Narukami talks more than he has this whole month. That doesn't make Yosuke feel weird; he loves listening to his partner's voice. Still, he knows exactly what Yu's doing – already making up for what he's going to do, even though it's not his fault he doesn't feel the same way Yosuke does.

Mr. Dojima and Nanako aren't home – that's probably a good thing. They won't have to witness Yosuke being a sobbing gay mess.

They still wind up in Yu's room, despite having the whole house to themselves. Yosuke immediately finds himself sitting on the couch, no longer sure if it's exhaustion or anxiety or both pulling him down.

“I listened to your mixtape...” Narukami says, closing the door behind him. Yosuke is amazed at how many muscles he can tense up at once.

He needs to sort this all out, explain himself, apologize. But how? He can't find even one word, much less anything constructive that could redeem him. He just sits there, in silence, staring at his knees like a preschooler being scolded.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Narukami's feet stepping closer. Then he feels his body fill the space next to him. Then he feels a hand gripping his shoulder, then another hand cupping his cheek and gently turning it to one side. His face is mere inches from Narukami's and he wants nothing more but to close that distance, but he can't; he's frozen in place.

“...Did you like it?” is all that Yosuke manages to say. He still doesn't know what exactly is happening; absolute exhaustion and adrenaline do not mix well.

Narukami chuckles, though it's barely audible. Is he getting closer? “I loved it...” He is definitely getting closer.

Yu presses a kiss on his partner's lips. He pulls away almost immediately, but that little is enough to make Yosuke finally come to his senses.

He always imagined that he'd be the one to kiss Yu, not the other way around. Then he'd apologize, and then Yu would leave his life forever. He thought even hoping for love was stupid and unrealistic, but reality proved him wrong.

“And I love you, too...” Yu says, a tinge of hesitation in his voice as if he still can't comprehend that the feeling is mutual. 

This time, it is Yosuke who closes the distance. More sure of this than of anything before, he pushes deeper into the kiss. Yu's hands meet behind Yosuke's back. In turn, Yosuke wraps his arms around Narukami's waist. The brunet breaks away to catch his breath and touches his forehead to Yu's, staring into his eyes. He's never thought he'd ever get to stare at him so blatantly, from so close.

Yosuke has resisted the urge to lose himself in Narukami's eyes for too long not to drown in them immediately when given the chance. He notes the dilated pupils, the pools of grey surrounding them, the sparkles-

Yu's eyes disappear under his eyelids. Then his lips disappear in Yosuke's. The caution and discretion of the first few kisses is long gone; each one is more eager, hungrier than the one before it. By the time Yosuke realizes he's laying on the couch with his partner on top of him, Yu has pulled away, panting. He looks stunning, a hint of red on his cheeks, his hair more distressed than Yosuke's ever seen it. If he weren't so tired, he would pull him down and keep this going forever.

“Let's... slow down a bit.” Yu smiles and gets up, his hand stretched out toward Yosuke.

Yosuke takes the hand and Narukami helps him up. He almost lets go of it, but then remembers he doesn't have to. His partner doesn't let go, either. He squeezes Yosuke's hand, which feels confusingly intimate, especially considering how they just finished making out seconds ago.

Yu smiles, drags Yosuke across the room, and opens the cupboard with the CD player inside it. He presses play and Yosuke's mix starts playing. It's quiet enough not to be distracting. He picks up the CD case from atop the player and turns to Yosuke.

“How did you come up with this?” The sight of the CD case makes Yosuke quiver; he isn't sure if it's the memory of stressing over it or his lack of artistic ability manifested on the cover. Probably both.

“Um... Well, it was supposed to be a Valentine's Day gift, but I kinda chickened out.” Yosuke is using his free hand to scratch the back of his neck. He can't help cringing at the way he confessed, but he's relieved that it's all over now.

“Trust me, I'm the chicken here. I even considered pretending I didn't notice. I thought it was a prank or something at first.”

“And then what?”

“Well, I saw you being a mess at school today, so I knew something was wrong... Also, you take your mixtapes way too seriously to pull pranks with them.”

“You might be right...” Yosuke pecks Yu on the lips, still astonished at how he can just do that now. “I could've just said it to your face, though... Y'know, like a normal person?”

“I don't want normal, I want you...” Yu shifts his gaze to the CD case again, probably in an attempt to hide his embarrassment at how salacious his words sound. “Besides, it's a great souvenir.” Narukami looks both happy and sad at the same time.

Yosuke suddenly feels his fatigue coming back. The fact that Yu is coming back to the city soon is always present somewhere at the back of his head, but it stings when brought to the forefront, especially now. 

“Right...” 

Yu lets go of his hand and sits back down on the couch. It's as if the harsh reality is weighing him down, as well. Without much thought, Yosuke lays down, using his partner's thigh as a pillow, his legs hanging off the edge of the couch.

“You sure I can't, like, sneak inside your suitcase and go with you?” Yosuke asks, looking at the ceiling while Yu is brushing his hands through his hair. 

“My suitcase could barely store a Nanako, I'm afraid. Plus, your parents would kill me.” Yosuke's eyes are closed, but he can almost hear Yu smiling through his words.

“I'll take care of that: 'Mom, Dad, I'm super gay for Narukami Yu and wanna run away with him!' They'll kill me, instead.” Yosuke laughs weakly. Yu joins him.

“Let's worry about that when the time comes. We still have a month left before that.”

“Yeah, let's get the most out of it. Seize the day n'shit...” Yosuke's words are getting progressively more slurred.

“Exactly,” Yu laughs.

Yosuke does not respond; what else could he add? If he were less tired, he would go back to kissing Yu in a heartbeat, but he decides to bask in this moment instead of creating a new one. For now.

Yu doesn't add anything, either, but that's hardly surprising. The only sound he contributes to the otherwise silent room is the one his fingers make, gently combing Yosuke's hair.

The seizing of the day might have to wait until tomorrow. Yosuke is asleep within minutes, his mind finally clear enough of worries to let him drift away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first chapter took me a couple hours, but I struggled with this one for a loooooong time. Might be because Yosuke's way less malleable than Yu or because I like writing hopeless pining more than I do its resolution... Anyway, hope it didn't suck! Thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> I'm new to writing and also self-taught at English so this probably sucks, but who cares? I'm too deep in Souyo hell not to write about them...  
> Also I totally did NOT spend 3 hours picking the songs that fit and arranging them in such order to make Yosuke's message work. God bless quarantine.


End file.
